Analysis on epidemiological characteristics of food poisoning events in Agadir prefecture, Morocco, from 2015 to 2017

Abstract

Food poisoning is a significant public health problem. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiological characteristics of food poisoning events in Agadir prefecture in Morocco. Data on food poisoning events was compiled and analyzed from 2015 to 2017. The food poisoning database was created using Excel software, and the data was classified for statistical analysis. In Agadir prefecture, 11 food poisoning events were recorded over the past three years, involving 163 persons and resulting in two deaths. There were 7 and 4 events in the urban and rural areas, respectively. Females were most exposed (67.5%). The annual average morbidity rate was 27.2/100,000, the global lethality rate was 1.3%, and an average of 14.8 persons was involved in a poisoning event. Adolescents make up a quarter of the cases. Most cases occurred in closed communities. The foods involved in these poisoning events were eaten raw. The most common food related with poisoning was meat products. Only six events had samples taken for microbiological testing of the food remaining implicated in the outbreak of these events, and the findings revealed that Salmonella and Escherichia coli were identified in four of the six events, while Candida albicans and total coliforms were detected in two of the six events. Foodborne illness prevention and control should be carried out in closed communities by improving food safety supervision, implementing an effective food poisoning early-warning system, and establishing a surveillance, inspection, and early-warning system for food contaminants and foodborne diseases.

Occurrence of Antibiotic Resistance in Salmonella Serotypes Isolated from Environment, Humans, Animals, and Animal Products in Morocco: A Systematic Review

“…The risk assessment of foodborne bacterial pathogens in axis Rabat-Casablanca Morocco revealed that the raw products, particularly poultry meat and red meat, were most contaminated by Salmonella with the respective prevalence of 21.05% and 5% (Oba et al, 2014) On a local scale, the analysis of the epidemiological characteristics of foodborne diseases at the prefecture of Agadir over 3 years (2015)(2016)(2017) showed 11 foodborne disease outbreaks concerning 163 poisoned individuals with 2 cases of death. Salmonella species and Escherichia coli (E. Coli) were identified in four of six samples subjected to microbiological analysis (Bouchriti et al, 2021). In a similar study in Kenitra, Morocco, 43 foodborne disease outbreaks were reported between 2001 and 2018, affecting 367 poisoned individuals, including 69 hospitalized and 2 death cases.…”